Amadou-Mahtar M’Bow: UNESCO, NWICO and the U.S. – NAIROBI 1976 and the February 2011 ‘Arab Spring’

Edris Makward
Professor Emeritus, Department of African Languages and Literature
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Wednesday, May 2, 2012 at 7:30 p.m.
56th Annual Free Public Lecture
Bernard M. Levinson, Professor at University of Minnesota
“‘You Must Not Add Anything to What I Command You’: Paradoxes of Canon and Authorship in Ancient Israel”
at the AT & T Lounge in the Pyle Center, 702 Langdon St., Madison

Professor Bernard M. Levinson will present a free public lecture entitled, “‘You Must Not Add Anything To What I Command You’: Paradoxes of Canon And Authorship in Ancient Israel.” Professor Levinson’s lecture addresses how Israel, having a tradition of prestigious or authoritative texts, dealt with the problem of literary and legal innovation. By comparing scribal practices in ancient Mesopotamian cuneiform law, he shows how ancient Israel’s development of the idea of divine revelation of law that might have been expected to impede legal revision or amendment tolerated modification through exegetical innovation.

As a test-case, Professor Levinson begins with the concept of divine punishment in the Decalogue: the idea that God punishes sinners transgenerationally, vicariously extending the punishment due one generation to three or four generations of their progeny. A series of inner-biblical and post-biblical response to the rule demonstrates, however, that later writers were able to criticize, reject, and replace it with the alternative notion of individual retribution. The lecture’s conclusions stress the extent to which the formative canon sponsors this kind of critical reflection and intellectual freedom.

This lecture is sponsored by University Lectures Committee and the Department of Hebrew & Semitic Studies with the generous support of the Ettinger Family Foundation; co-sponsored by the Mosse/Weinstein Center for Jewish Studies and the Lubar Institute for the Study of the Abrahamic Religions. For more information, please contact the Department of Hebrew & Semitic Studies, email  hebrew@mailplus.wisc.edu

Here is the full event description:

The Greenfield Summer Institute was the brainchild of Lawrence Greenfield, a member of the Center for Jewish Studies Board of Visitors, who first proposed the idea of an adult summer institute in the mid-1990s. The first Greenfield Summer Institute in 2000 brought together people from the Madison community and beyond to participate in a unique blend of continuing education, entertainment, and fellowship. Now underwritten by the generosity of Larry and Ros Greenfield, the Institute showcases the research of UW–Madison faculty and acclaimed Jewish Studies scholars from around the country. Each year the Institute’s lectures center around a theme (past years’ themes have included Jewish identity, Jews and politics, the “Wandering Jew,” Jewish Studies and the arts, Jews and gender, Israel, European Jewry, and American Jewish history). In addition to lectures that explore the year’s theme in depth, the Institute also features concerts, dinners, and other opportunities to socialize.

For even more info, go to the website here.

• Islamic Theological Perspectives on Democracy
• Islam, Liberalism, and Pluralism
• Islam, Secularism, and the State
• Islam and Nationalism
• Muslim Women and Democracy
• Islam and Democracy in the Middle East
• Islam and Democracy in Central Asia
• Islam and Democracy in Europe
• Islam and Democracy: Turkey Model
• Arab Spring

More information on this huge gathering of minds can be found at http://www.islamconference.org/.  It promises to be an intellectually stimulating conference about the ever-changing political and cultural landscape of the Middle East and sure to be of interest to anyone concentrating in the area of Middle East Studies.

As spring semester is slowly wrapping up, I wanted to take a moment to remind of you of some great resources.  The MESP website has lots of information regarding courses, faculty, etc.  I will continue to update this blog with internships, events around campus, and other opportunities.  If you know of any events that you feel relate to MESP, please feel free to email cmes@mideast.wisc.edu.  Furthermore, check out the Ghapps website for all of the international events around campus.

If you have any questions, concerns, or comments, please feel free to email cmes@mideast.wisc.edu.

Thanks so much and good luck with finals!

-MESP

Our presenter is UW Political Science Prof. Jon Pevehouse
who will be discussing recent events and hosting a Q&A.

Prof. Jon Pevehouse is an expert in international relations theory,
international security, foreign policy, international political economy, and political methodology.
Specifically, Professor Pevehouse focuses on the link between international institutions and their political
and economic outcomes whether at the domestic or international level.
Topics on which he has recently published include reciprocity in regional conflicts,
regional trade agreements, international influences on democratization, and economic interdependence.